Department of Chemistry course timetable

November 2018

These lectures will introduce the basics of crystallography and diffraction, assuming no prior knowledge. The aim is to provide an overview that will inspire and serve as a basis for researchers to use the Department’s single-crystal and/or powder X-ray diffraction facilities or to appreciate more effectively results obtained through the Department’s crystallographic services. The final lecture will be devoted to searching and visualising crystallographic data using the Cambridge Structural Database system.

These lectures will introduce the basics of crystallography and diffraction, assuming no prior knowledge. The aim is to provide an overview that will inspire and serve as a basis for researchers to use the Department’s single-crystal and/or powder X-ray diffraction facilities or to appreciate more effectively results obtained through the Department’s crystallographic services. The final lecture will be devoted to searching and visualising crystallographic data using the Cambridge Structural Database system.

Probe microscopy is a general term for a class of microscopy in which well-defined nanoscale probes are used to interact with a sample in some manner.
In this introductory lecture the necessary background principles to understand probe microscopy are explained with reference to Scanning Tunnelling Microscopy and Atomic Force Microscopy in both tapping and contact mode. This will provide the user with the necessary background to make the most of the increasingly well-used Departmental Keysight 5500 multimode system, which is operated and maintained by the Melville Lab. Probe microscopy is of interest to anyone with a need to perform single molecule or surface based studies. Typically anything involving a surface interaction is accessible and the technique is particularly well suited to studying a variety of chemical and electromechanical properties of aggregates with 1-1000 nm dimensions. Recently, the system has been used to study cellulose crystals, amyloid fibres, protein monolayers, thermal properties of polymer films, doped graphite and so on.

Other modes are available on the Keysight system such as pico-trec, electrochemical STM, EFM, KFM, MFM, and LFM and these modes will be described but not explained in detail during the lecture.

This compulsory course will equip you with the skills required to manage the research information you will need to gather throughout your graduate course, as well as the publications you will produce yourself. It will also help you enhance your online research profile and measure the impact of research.

The first session will describe the basics of electron diffraction and the main differences from X-ray and neutron diffraction, particularly as regards the strength of the interaction and the complications caused by multiple scattering. The advantages of the method in determining unit cell dimensions will also be discussed.

Session two will concentrate on the advantages conferred by forming images with electrons but also on the inherent problems such as the effect of aberrations on the ultimate resolution. If there is sufficient time, a consideration of the information available in high resolution images will be made.

The first session will describe the basics of electron diffraction and the main differences from X-ray and neutron diffraction, particularly as regards the strength of the interaction and the complications caused by multiple scattering. The advantages of the method in determining unit cell dimensions will also be discussed.

Session two will concentrate on the advantages conferred by forming images with electrons but also on the inherent problems such as the effect of aberrations on the ultimate resolution. If there is sufficient time, a consideration of the information available in high resolution images will be made.

December 2018

The main aim of giving a presentation to the public or a science venue is to present information in a way that the audience will remember at a later time. There are several ways in which we can improve this type of impact with an audience. This interactive lecture explores some of those mechanisms.

The main aim of giving a presentation to the public or a science venue is to present information in a way that the audience will remember at a later time. There are several ways in which we can improve this type of impact with an audience. This interactive lecture explores some of those mechanisms.

This session will require 4-5 volunteers to provide a 10 min talk which the session will show how to improve. Presenters in the following week's Peer to Peer presentations will be given priority booking for this event.

January 2019

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

In this short talk we will cover what supervisions are, the role they play in Cambridge teaching, and how supervisors are recruited. We will then go on to look at how you can prepare for supervising, how you can conduct a supervision, and how to deal with common pitfalls.

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

FS1 - Successful Completion of a Research Degree An hour devoted to a discussion of how to plan your time effectively on a day to day basis, how to produce a dissertation/thesis (from first year report to MPhil to PhD) and the essential requirements of an experimental section.

FS2 - Dignity@Study The University of Cambridge is committed to protecting the dignity of staff, students, visitors to the University, and all members of the University community in their work and their interactions with others. The University expects all members of the University community to treat each other with respect, courtesy and consideration at all times. All members of the University community have the right to expect professional behaviour from others, and a corresponding responsibility to behave professionally towards others. Nick will explore what this means for graduate students in this Department and the session will conclude with tea/coffee and biscuits, in order to provide an opportunity to ask questions more informally.

This is a compulsory session which introduces new graduate students to the Department of Chemistry Library and its place within the wider Cambridge University Library system. It provides general information on what is available, where it is, and how to get it. Print and online resources are included.

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

The CCDC originated in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, and is now a fully independent institution constituted as a non-profit company and a registered charity.

Ian Bruno, Head of Strategic Partnerships at the CCDC, will present this session. Ian will firstly introduce the CCDC and the CSD, and will then focus on enablers for FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) chemistry data, including standard identifiers (e.g. InChI), standard file formats (e.g. for spectra), open file formats (e.g. for structures), and vocabularies.

A second session will follow on identifiers and extensions to the InChI that have been introduced in this session, to be presented by Professor Jonathan Goodman (IS9 course).

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

February 2019

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

This course is made up of 8 sessions which will be based around the topics below: unlike other courses in the Graduate Lecture Series, it is essential to attend all 8 sessions to benefit from this training. Places are limited so please be absolutely certain upon booking that you will commit to the entire course.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the context of chemistry has a long history. The first application was in mass spectrometry, but AI is now being applied to a diverse range of problems, including reaction prediction and drug discovery.
Machine learning (ML) is an important part of AI, and the aim of this course is to introduce some of the main ML concepts and techniques, and to illustrate their use in contemporary chemical applications. By the end of the course, you should be able to judge which of these ML techniques are appropriate for a given task and evaluate the results.

The InChI is a standard identifier for molecules, which has initiated the discussion of many other possibilities for molecular identifiers. This talk will explain how the development of the InChI has led to the development of the InChIKey, and to extensions of the system including reactions (RInChI), mixtures (MInChI), tautomers, variable structures, organometallics, biologics and QR codes.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the context of chemistry has a long history. The first application was in mass spectrometry, but AI is now being applied to a diverse range of problems, including reaction prediction and drug discovery.
Machine learning (ML) is an important part of AI, and the aim of this course is to introduce some of the main ML concepts and techniques, and to illustrate their use in contemporary chemical applications. By the end of the course, you should be able to judge which of these ML techniques are appropriate for a given task and evaluate the results.